I Can Meet with Dead Scientists

Chapter 446 - 223 "About This Struggling Author Pulling an All-Nighter to Write 15,000 Words and Therefore Not Wanting to Choose a Title"_5

"There’s no way we can cross Whitecome Mountain tonight, the main axle is broken, we must find a village to resupply."

"Arles Village, not possible, too far away..."

"Simuni Village, sixty miles to the south, that’s troublesome too..."

A few minutes passed.

Thomson’s index finger suddenly paused on a small black dot:

"Hmm? Mendisolo Village, about... twelve miles from here?"

It is well known.

In Scotland, vast lands are sparsely populated, with an area equivalent to a province in the homeland, yet only a little over five million people.

Until the 20th century, the Scots lived a semi-nomadic lifestyle.

Therefore, in small gathering points like villages, you are bound to find all kinds of travel tools.

If you’re willing, you can even purchase a brand-new carriage.

So resupplying isn’t difficult, the key is...

Reflecting on his mission this time, a hint of seriousness and a barely noticeable worry flashed through Thomson’s eyes.

According to the original plan.

He had prepared ample supplies before setting off, enough to reach Sheffield and even Nottingham without need for further provisioning in towns, avoiding undue attention.

Even with the unexpected presence of Xu Yun, he only needed to drop him near Dandris Town before continuing his detour.

What he didn’t foresee.

The axle’s break disrupted his plan entirely, forcing him to seek a human settlement for resupplies...

However, Mendisolo Village is merely a small village of two hundred or so people, staying just one night shouldn’t result in any major mishaps, right?

With this in mind.

Thomson had made up his mind.

He then took a deep breath, put away the map, and pointed in a direction:

"Let’s head to Mendisolo Village, rest there tonight, buy an axle from a hunter, and set off tomorrow."

Xu Yun and Will had no objections.

The three then began pushing the carriage with the broken axle towards their destination.

.....

Three hours later.

A bit weary, the three arrived outside a village.

Unlike European villages of later times.

19th-century European rural areas were mostly constructed based on family units.

The residential and farming areas were separate, and the village centers housed many communal facilities like corn mills or water pumps.

Such scenes were depicted in John Constable’s painting "The Hay Wain."

Due to the mountainous surroundings, Scottish village residential areas were often enclosed by fences, with fields outside the fences.

However, to Xu Yun’s surprise.

The village before them wasn’t enclosed by fences, but a solid earthen wall.

The wall stood about two meters high, with unknown thickness, appearing quite sturdy.

The entire village had only one entry point on the north side of the wall, somewhat akin to Huaxia’s ’li.’

It was midday, and smoke rose from within the village, projecting an image of peace and tranquility.

Seeing this.

Thomson signaled Xu Yun and the others to stop the carriage, then walked alone to the gate and knocked:

"Is anyone there?"

Moments later.

A peephole at eye level suddenly opened, and an elder peered out:

"Who goes there? What business brings you to Gao Lao Village?"

"Gao Lao Village? Elder, isn’t this Mendisolo Village?"

"Indeed, Mendisolo Village is the official name, but because most villagers are remarkably tall, it’s nicknamed Gao Lao Village."

"I see, Hallelujah. Elder, we are merchants traveling from the west to conduct business in the east. Passing through here, our carriage axle broke. Could we rest here overnight and resume our journey tomorrow?"

There was a brief silence from the other side of the gate, then:

"How many of you are there, sir?"

"Three men, with a white horse."

After a while.

Creak—

The gate slowly opened.

A wiry old man emerged from behind the gate, hands behind his back, saying:

"Come in, please."

Thomson thanked him and told Xu Yun and William behind him:

"Will, Luo Feng, let’s go inside."

Once inside.

The old man led them to the village path, introducing himself:

"Mr. Thomson, my name is Evar. I am the hay overseer elected by the village council and also responsible for the village entrance."

"We have some decent carpenters in the village, but each specializes differently. What size axle do you need replacing?"

Thomson and Will exchanged glances, and Will said:

"Three to four inches will be enough."

"Three to four inches..."

Evar stroked his beard, quickly thinking of someone suitable:

"Understood, follow me."

He then led the group in a particular direction.

19th-century Scottish villages weren’t wealthy enough to squander resources freely, so the allocated village space was relatively compact, with houses close to each other.

The village layout somewhat resembled modern collective new countryside housing, but they were all single-story.

On the way to the carpenter’s house, Xu Yun looked at the wall showing no signs of wear and curiously asked:

"Mr. Evar, this wall is newly built, isn’t it?"

Evar smiled and pointed to the corner of the wall, replying:

"Indeed, this wall is village-funded, built just over a year ago, so the foundation is still new."